Home
Psychological tests
Destructive Leadership Scale (DLS)

Destructive Leadership Scale (DLS) Test

Understand how your manager may be draining motivation and wellbeing in about 4 minutes. Get a clear snapshot in 19 items to spot risks early and support healthier leadership and retention.

Start Online Test

Questions: 194 minutes

Hi! My name is Freudly, i am an AI therapist, I will give you an interpretation of the test after you complete it.

08:30

October 2, 2025

October 2, 2025
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

21797 views

2693 completions

2157 likes

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

3/5

Demotivating Leadership (DL)

Measures the extent to which a leader’s behavior makes employees’ work feel meaningless and reduces motivation and engagement.

Low

Moderate

High

1 – 2.4: Low | 2.5 – 3.4: Moderate | 3.5 – 5: High

A score of 3 indicates a moderate level of demotivating leadership behaviors that may sometimes undermine employees’ sense of meaning and motivation at work.

example score

2/5

Divisive Leadership (DL)

Measures the extent to which a manager’s behavior isolates an employee from the team and undermines belonging.

Low

Moderate

High

1 – 2.3: Low | 2.4 – 3.6: Moderate | 3.7 – 5: High

A score of 2 indicates a low level of disconnecting leadership, suggesting relatively few isolating behaviors are perceived.

example score

4/5

Devaluing Leadership (DL)

Measures the extent to which a leader devalues employees and undermines their confidence and professional development.

Low

Moderate

High

1 – 2.3: Low | 2.4 – 3.6: Moderate | 3.7 – 5: High

A score of 4 indicates a high level of disparaging leadership, suggesting frequent behaviors that may reduce employees’ sense of competence and hinder growth.

example score

3/5

Coercive Leadership (CL)

Measures the extent to which a leader uses controlling, directive behaviors that limit employee autonomy in day-to-day work.

Low coercion

Moderate coercion

High coercion

1 – 2.4: Low coercion | 2.5 – 3.4: Moderate coercion | 3.5 – 5: High coercion

A score of 3 indicates a moderate level of coercive leadership, suggesting noticeable control and direction that may sometimes reduce autonomy and engagement.

Start Online Test

just completed the test

DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Frustrated team members

46%OF USERS

Employees take it to check whether their manager’s behaviors are undermining motivation and contributing to stress or burnout.

HR and people leaders

32%OF USERS

HR professionals and senior managers use it to spot harmful leadership patterns and target coaching or culture interventions.

Researchers and students

22%OF USERS

Organizational researchers and students take it to measure destructive leadership and compare results across teams or studies.

BASED ON AGGREGATED, ANONYMIZED DATA FROM TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREUDLY USERS.

RESULTS YOU CAN ACTUALLY USE

What You’ll See After You Finish the Test

Scale Results
— Explained Clearly

Your scores across each test scale, translated into plain, usable insights. Not just numbers, but what they actually mean for your daily life, emotional state, and overall well-being.

AI-Powered
Interpretation

A structured, clinically grounded explanation. Our AI analyzes patterns and relationships between scales to provide a coherent interpretation — without alarmist language.

Statistical
Comparison

See how you compare to others. Your scores are placed in a statistical context, showing percentiles and trends based on anonymized platform data to help you understand what`s typical.

Practical
Recommendations

Actionable guidance tailored to your profile. Receive clear, realistic suggestions you can apply immediately — focused on coping, self-regulation, and realistic next steps.

AI-Detected
Insights

Key patterns you might not notice on your own. Surfacing subtle connections in your responses that help you better understand what may be driving your current results.

Discuss with
an AI Psychologist

Clarify, reflect, and explore right away. Talk through your outcomes, ask questions, and explore meanings in a calm, non-diagnostic dialogue environment.

Start Online Test

Used in 52+ countries

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you finish the test, your results will be compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of the benchmarks we use to place your score in context.

Demotivating Leadership (DL)

Average

2.4

Normal range

1.8 — 3

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Disconnecting Leadership (DL)

Average

3.7

Normal range

3.1 — 4.3

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Disparaging leadership (Dl)

Average

2.2

Normal range

1.5 — 2.8

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Coercive Leadership (CL)

Average

3.1

Normal range

2.5 — 3.6

min.

max.

majority

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear here so you can see where you land.

Start Online Test

Featured On

Rated 4.8/5 by Our Customers

“Freudly really helped me discover parts of my personality I hadn’t noticed before. It strengthened the areas where I needed to grow and made me feel more grounded and confident in the parts that already worked well.”

— Emma C., US

“I wanted to understand how serious my ADHD is, and now I finally do. I also realized I need to work on my self-esteem. It has been low for a long time, and that makes daily life harder than it should be.”

— Mateo R., CA

“Reading each question felt like someone really understood me. Even though I’ve already dealt with much of this, reflecting still helped me learn something new about myself.”

— Caroline F., US

“The process is simple. The test covers everything you need, and you’ll get a clear breakdown of your results. For just a few dollars, it’s a great value.”

— Klara N., CZ

“I kept thinking there might be a small chance, but now I know for sure. The questions were easy to understand, and the whole process was straightforward.”

— Bruno M., BR

“I really enjoyed this experience. I learned a lot, and it helped me make sense of my thoughts and the feeling I’ve had for a long time that I may have grown up with undiagnosed ADHD.”

— Alice B., FR

“Great platform — the insights were genuinely meaningful!”

— Daniel W., DE

“Everything was easy to follow. The tools you get at the end are genuinely helpful for self-growth, and the price is very reasonable. I really appreciate that.”

— Sofia M., ES

“Surprisingly accurate — honestly didn’t expect it to nail things so well.”

— Adir B., IL

“There are lots of different tests to pick from, and the price is surprisingly low for how much insight you get.”

— Olivia W., CA

“I was pleasantly surprised when I read the results. It was as if someone had sorted out my messy thoughts and given me useful tips to help me speak with more confidence.”

— Grace O., IE

“It was really solid, very detailed, and it actually helped me make sense of a lot of things.”

— Carla T., TT

“I was really impressed with the report. It was clear, thoughtful, and it reflected things I’ve been noticing about myself.”

— Jade H., US

“The questions made me think deeply and helped me become more self-aware.”

— Brooke S., US

“Reading through most of the questions made me feel understood. Although I’ve already worked through some of these issues, the questions still gave me useful insights and helped me learn more about myself.”

— Ryan M., US

“I usually take one or two tests each month, and this has become a good way for me to see how I’m doing.”

— Lucas W., US

“Most of the time, my results are in the 90 to 98th percentile compared to others. It really makes me feel like there’s something unique about me.”

— Ethan C., US

“I tried out some of the AI’s suggestions, and to be honest, they worked much better than I thought they would. Maybe this thing really is smarter than me.”

— Reece D., AU

Trusted by 22k+ Users Worldwide

CLEAR ANSWERS TO COMMON QUESTIONS

Frequently Asked Questions

Any questions left?

What does this questionnaire measure?

It measures leadership behaviors that reduce motivation by undermining autonomy, competence, relatedness, and significance. Higher scores indicate more frequent demotivating or harmful leadership behavior.

Who should complete it?

It is intended for employees who have regular contact with a direct supervisor or manager. It may also be used in research or organizational reviews of leadership practices.

How long does it take and how many items are included?

Completion time is about 4 minutes. The questionnaire includes 19 items.

How should responses be chosen?

Responses should reflect observed behavior over a typical recent period rather than a single incident. Select the option that best matches the usual frequency or intensity.

How should results be interpreted and used?

Results indicate areas where leadership behavior may be contributing to disengagement and burnout risk. The measure supports discussion and development planning and is not a clinical diagnosis.

WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Destructive Leadership Scale (DLS) Test

leadership management arrange leadership style

This self-report measure is designed to assess employees’ perceptions of harmful or undermining leader behaviors in the workplace. The Destructive Leadership Scale (DLS), developed by Jean M. Lipman-Blumen and Robert J. House, focuses on behaviors that may erode motivation, engagement, and psychological needs relevant to effective functioning.

The instrument contains 19 items and typically requires about 4 minutes to complete. Responses can be used to characterize the perceived frequency or intensity of destructive leadership behaviors and to inform organizational assessment, research, and targeted follow-up. Results from the Destructive Leadership Scale (DLS) should be interpreted within the broader organizational context and alongside other sources of information when used for decision-making.

Author: Jean M. Lipman-Blumen, Robert J. House

Literature: Tepper, B. J. Consequences of abusive supervision. Academy of Management Journal. 2000.; Nikolova, I., Caniëls, M. C. J., Schaufeli, W., & Semeijn, J. H. Disengaging leadership scale (DLS): Evidence of initial validity. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021.

Test Question Form